1. Field of the Invention
The present technology relates to oil and gas production. In particular, the present technology relates to oil and gas production from subsea gathering manifolds or wells using buoyancy.
2. Description of the Related Art
The production of oil and gas from subsea gathering manifolds or oil wells typically requires raising crude oil through a riser from the seabed to the sea surface. This procedure has inefficiencies, including, for example, pressure drop within the riser. This pressure drop increases when the crude oil pressure falls below the bubble point, which changes the flow from a single-phase to a two-phase flow.
In addition, separation of oil and gas from crude oil is typically carried out at an onshore gas oil separation plant. This requires, after the crude oil reaches the platform through the risers, multiphase pumps to ship the crude oil to the onshore plant. Accordingly, an oil producer must invest in expensive equipment, such as oil pumps and gas compressors, and gas oil separation plants.